How important is religious support in higher education?

With more than half of the UK population professing no faith, it’s easy to assume that religion doesn’t have much space in the university setting.But a new report has shown that there is a place for religion, and it’s commonly reserved for the assumed secular pursuit of truth. Chaplains – representatives of religious or belief organisations attached to a secular institution – were found to play an “integral” role in many universities.These individuals contribute to student support beyond religious activities. Most work done by chaplains focuses on pastoral activities like counselling, including for those who claim they are not of any faith.Writing in The Conversation, co-author Mathew Guest said: “Our research found that each year, university chaplains contribute around £4.5m of volunteer labour to the higher education sector. Volunteer university chaplains – which make up over 40 percent of the total – give around 3,500 hours of free labour each week.”